Chapter 180: Origin-Grade Treasure, Fruit of the World Tree!

"The Fates?!"

Hearing this name, Song Qi fell into deep contemplation.

Based on this name, combined with their attire, he finally remembered.

"The beings in ancient Greek mythology who govern the Loom of Fate?"

In Greek mythology, the three sisters who weave the threads of fate were precisely the three figures before him. They were the three daughters born from the union of Zeus and Themis, the goddess of justice. Their duty was to weave the destinies of all living beings, to warn the gods of future sins and their consequences, to urge them to make wise use of the present, and to remind the gods of all past experiences.

Meanwhile, in some versions of mythology, they were also the guardians and nurturers of the World Tree, tasked with fetching water daily from the Well of Urd to nourish the tree. When the three sisters cast their shuttles and wove their webs, they did not act entirely according to their own wills, but rather obeyed the oldest and most supreme power in the universe—the primordial and endless spiritual will.

The eldest sister, Urd, governed death and the past.
The second sister, Verthandi, represented the present and was responsible for maintaining the threads of fate.
The youngest sister, Skuld, ruled over the future and the spinning of the threads of fate.

Yet it was said that the youngest sister, Skuld, had a fierce temper and would, for no apparent reason, tear the nearly completed web of fate into pieces, casting them into the winds to drift across the heavens. Because of this, many contradictory things were born into the world, causing wise men to sometimes miscalculate, and fools to occasionally stumble upon fortune.

"So it's you."

Upon learning the names of the three sisters, Song Qi experienced a sudden flash of realization. Their mating with monsters also began to feel somewhat reasonable to him. After all, in Greek mythology, all sorts of bizarre pairings and mating rituals were countless.

The first generation divine king in ancient Greek mythology was named Uranus, known as the god of the sky. The mother of Uranus was Gaia, the Mother Earth. Yet at the same time, Gaia, the Mother Earth, was also the wife of Uranus. Yes, that is correct! Gaia was both the mother and the wife of Uranus!

In ancient Greek mythology, procreation was a right, and thus this right was tightly clenched in the hands of the most powerful deity, Uranus. According to records, the primordial Uranus did nothing other than procreate with Gaia. He mating frantically with his mother and wife, giving birth to the twelve Titans, the Cyclopes, and the Hecatoncheires. Furthermore, he sealed all his offspring within Gaia's body, forbidding them from ever being born into the light, letting them be conceived, grow, and die entirely within Gaia's womb.

The manner of Uranus's death was utterly absurd. His outrageous behavior soon aroused the deep resentment of Gaia, prompting her to conspire with their youngest child, Cronus, to overthrow his tyrannical rule.

When Uranus once again advanced upon Gaia, Cronus, armed with a curved sickle, lay in wait within Gaia's belly. Seizing the right moment, he reached out, grabbed Uranus's appendage as it entered Gaia, and slashed it off with a single sweep of his blade!

That severed appendage was hurled far, far away, landing amidst the ocean waves. From the foaming sea spray rose Aphrodite, the goddess of love and lust. The divine blood and essence of Uranus splashed upon Gaia, causing her to independently conceive the Giants, the Furies, and the Meliae. From that moment on, the rule of Uranus was thoroughly overthrown.

Yet... that was still not the most absurd part!

The most absurd part was that after Cronus overthrew the rule of his father Uranus... he turned right around and subjugated his mother Gaia all over again, resuming the frantic mating! And to prevent suffering the same fate as his father, he devoured all of his own offspring straight into his belly.

The entire early phase of Greek mythology could be said to completely shatter one's worldview. The minds of the first and second-generation deities were filled with nothing but procreation from dawn till dusk. This state of affairs continued until the third-generation deity, Zeus, defeated Cronus, and things finally began to improve.

Of course, they only improved slightly. The private lives of the Olympian gods, led by Zeus, were off-the-charts outrageous. Not only humans, but animals, monsters, blood-related siblings, and even inanimate objects were violated by them without exception.

Therefore, upon realizing that the three women were figures from Greek mythology, Song Qi gained a slight understanding of their behavior. Their worldview was indeed quite different from that of normal humans; one could not use ordinary human morality to judge them.

"I understand..."

Song Qi nodded. "If that's the case, what is your purpose in coming to this world?"

"To escape disaster," the eldest sister sighed. "Our world was also invaded by the demon race. We resisted for thousands of years! Zeus fell in the third millennium, and Hades, the Lord of the Underworld, died in battle during the fourth millennium. By the fifth millennium, the Olympian gods fought a bloody battle backed by the World Tree, fighting the demon race until the very end of our lives!

"But in the end, most of the gods perished, leaving us with no strength to resist, and the World Tree was burned to ashes. The very essence of our world was completely drained by the demon race, making it impossible to continue generating life, and everything descended into a dead silence! At the very last moment, we used a World Tree fruit to open a passageway at the edge of the world, fleeing to various places alongside other surviving gods."

Song Qi looked thoughtful. "So the three of you birthed so many monster offspring simply to restore the glory of the Olympian gods?"

"That's correct," the second sister admitted directly.

"Then have you ever considered that your actions also constitute an encroachment upon a world that rightfully belongs to us?"

"Of course we considered it," the eldest sister nodded gently. "That is why we signed an agreement with a human named Laozi. He promised that we would have the right to survive on this continent until the arrival of the next leader of the human race. And now, fate has guided us to your presence."

"The leader of the human race? Me?" Song Qi was startled once again. "Isn't the current leader of the human race Elder Mu?"

The youngest sister, who had remained silent all this time, shook her head. "There is no mistake. Fate is absolute. Even if you are not now, you certainly will be in the future. Therefore, we need to sign a second contract with you. You only need to promise to grant us a piece of land large enough for us to survive."

Hearing this, Song Qi waved his hands while shaking his head incessantly. "No, no, no. I don't have the authority to grant you the right to survive in this world."

If he were to agree to this, wouldn't he become a traitor who compromised the interests of humanity?

"Don't be in such a hurry to refuse."

The eldest sister across from him produced a jade-green, perfectly round fruit! "As exchange, we are willing to offer a World Tree fruit!"

With that, before Song Qi could refuse further, she directly handed the fruit over.

Reaching out to catch it, Song Qi curiously checked its information...

[Treasure: World Tree Fruit]
[Quality: Primordial]
[Required Level: None]
[Required Attributes: None]
[Applicable Class: None]
[Strength: +0]
[Agility: +0]
[Constitution: +0]
[Spirit: +0]
[Effect 1: Can be planted at the world's origin to grow into a World Tree. The World Tree can continuously reinforce the world's barrier over time, enhance the world's primordial power, elevate the world's grade, and grant various effects depending on its growth stage.]
[Effect 2: Edible. Consuming it allows the user to elevate one skill to the Primordial stage!]
[Effect 3: Grants one wish of the holder. The outcome of the wish is guaranteed, though the method of realization remains uncertain.]
[Evaluation: A fruit nurtured at the very final moment of the World Tree's life, containing the power of an entire world within it.]

...

!!!

Song Qi gasped sharply! He almost forgot to breathe, and his heart skipped a beat. It took him a long time to finally regain his composure.

"A Primordial-grade item?!"
"This is a tier above Origin-grade?!"
"Hiss!——"

He found it hard to believe.

Seeing his expression, a smile appeared on the eldest sister's face.

"This is our sincerity. Only a territory is needed, whether it lies within this world or beyond, we are willing to accept it. There is no need for a contract, nor do we require any restriction on time or place! All we need is your verbal promise."